From Feud to Friendship: How Did Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya Become IPL Teammates?

(Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya hugging each other in an IPL Game for Lucknow Super Giants)

The game of cricket has always seen some of the toughest battles being played on the field; hence, it brings out the players' passion, aggression, and much more. But all the fights aren’t just limited to the field as there have been instances when a dispute between two players takes place off the field and hence it becomes an issue when it comes out in the public. One such matter was between Krunal Pandya and Deepak Hooda which escalated in the domestic tournaments of India and came to an end when both these guys joined the same team, Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL Auction. With a story of fight and friendship, this saga has been one to watch for the fans.

Fight between Krunal Pandya and Deepak Hooda in the Baroda team

The domestic season of Indian cricket is always an opportunity for youngsters and senior Indian players to showcase that they are fit for national duty and have the talent to represent their team at the highest level. One such tournament is the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, which is generally played from October to November. The teams are divided into groups to decide the ultimate winner amongst the Indian states. One such team is Baroda that has been participating in the tournament and it was the 2021 season that the controversy sparked.

Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya were in the same team which was Baroda and were teammates for a long time and never had any issues with each other. However, just before the start of the season in 2021, a piece of news broke out that Deepak Hooda had written a letter to the officials of the Baroda Cricket Association stating that the captain of the team, Krunal Pandya had misbehaved with the player and was constantly threatening him that it would lead to the end of his career for the Baroda team in the recent season.

(Deepak Hooda during a match for the Baroda team in Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy)

In a statement recorded by the Baroda player, Deepak Hooda stated how Krunal Pandya stopped him from practicing in the nets just before the tournament and hurled abuses at him in front of his teammates. Furthermore, he even threatened him regarding his position in the team and thus the cricketer has now left the Baroda team to find a new place in the Rajasthan team which was also going to play in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy 2021 season.

“I have been playing cricket since the last 11 years with the Baroda Cricket Association. At present, I am selected for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. I am demoralised, depressed and under pressure. As from last some days and at least from last couple of days, my team captain Mr. Krunal Pandiya is using abusive language to me in front of my team-mates and also other state teams who have come for participation at Reliance Stadium Vadodara.”

“Today I was practising in nets and doing my preparation for tomorrow’s game with the permission of Head Coach Mr. Prabhkar. Then Krunal came in nets started misbehaving with me. I told him that I was doing my preparation with the permission of the head coach. He told me that ‘I’m the captain, who is the head coach? I am the overall of the Baroda team. Then he stopped my practice showing his Dadagiri.”

(Krunal Pandya and Deepak Hooda in their respective domestic cricket jerseys)

“He is trying to pull me down all the time. He is threatening me with how you will play for Baroda, I will see you. I have never seen such an unhealthy atmosphere in my cricketing career to date. I have represented at all levels of cricket from Baroda Cricket Association only. Also, I’ve been playing IPL for the last 7 years. I have got a good record also in my cricketing career till date.”

“I have played a lot of cricket with great international players and captains as well till date. But I never face such a bad behaviour given by a team captain. I’m a team man and I always keep my team above me… In view of the above facts, I am unable to play and perform my best under circumstances where every time our Baroda team captain pokes me and disturbs me in my preparation.”

With Deepak Hooda leaving the Baroda team, it was a big setback for the team as he was one of the main players for the team because of his skill and the way he used to attack in the middle overs of the game. Furthermore, during this period, Krunal Pandya was playing for Mumbai Indians in the IPL while Deepak Hooda was with the Punjab Kings and even during the match between these two teams during the IPL, both the players were hardly seen together on the ground.

(Krunal Pandya in the Mumbai Indian jersey and Deepak Hooda in the Punjab Kings jersey in IPL 2021)

Even the Baroda Cricket Association secretary was disappointed with the whole saga between Krunal Pandya and Deepak Hooda. He stated that they have provided the NOC to Deepak Hooda and it’s a big disappointing decision from the management as they have lost a player who had the capability of leading them in the future. Ajit Lele said:

“We issued the NOC to him on Wednesday. It is unfortunate that he had to leave Baroda. I think the whole issue (of Hooda and Krunal) could have been handled more pragmatically.”

In the tweet done by the Baroda Cricket Association, it was seen that they have made the decision to remain quiet on the whole matter and it’s a feud between the two players and if a player wants to make himself unavailable, then it’s completely their decision and hence there won’t be any investigation or further judgement on the matter.

“Baroda Cricket Association has been informed by Deepak Hooda that he will not be able to participate in the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament to be held in Baroda. The Institution puts the game above any player and respects his decision to make himself unavailable. The speculation of a rift is a personal assessment of the player in the situation and the Institution has no comment to make other than wish him well in his endeavours.”

(Irfan Pathan came out in support of Deepak Hooda in the matter)

With all the things going on around the Baroda team, the former player of the Indian cricket team and the one who played his domestic cricket from the Baroda team came out in support of Deepak Hooda and slammed the Baroda Cricket Association for not handling the matter well. In his point, he stated that Deepak Hooda was a special player for the team and his absence will hurt the team in the longer run of the domestic seasons.

“How many cricket associations will lose out on a player who is in the Indian team's probable list? Deepak Hooda leaving Baroda Cricket is a huge loss. He could have easily given his services for another 10 years as he is still young. As a Barodian, it's utterly disappointing.”

Lucknow Super Giants bought Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya in the 2022 IPL Auction

After the IPL 2021, the BCCI announced that there would be a mega auction because of the two new teams coming into the competition and hence the teams released the majority of their players where Krunal Pandya was released by the Mumbai Indians while on the other hand, Punjab Kings released Deepak Hooda and hence both the players were back in the auction pool. During the auction, every fan was looking to see which team gets the best players available in the lot.

Coming to the Lucknow Super Giants team, they managed to build up a plan of picking Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya as Gautam Gambhir being their mentor wanted both the players to play for the same team because of their skillset. Deepak Hooda was bought first by the team for a price of INR 5.75 crore while Krunal Pandya was bought by the team for a price of INR 8.25 crore and hence everyone was astonished to see both the players in the same team.

(Lucknow Super Giants management during the IPL 2022 Auction)

After buying both the players in the IPL Auction, Gautam Gambhir was even asked about his decision of including two players who have got some issues with each other and it might affect the balance of the team. However, to this, Gambhir replied by stating that it isn’t compulsory to be friends with everyone present in the team. He added:

“Look, you don't have to be best friends off the field to perform on it. They are professionals and they know that they have a job to do. You don't have to go out for dinner every night if you are playing on the same team. I have not been friends with everyone in every team that I have played in. But that hasn't stopped me from giving my best when I am out there on the field. These are mature people and they know they are here to win matches for Lucknow.”

How did Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya settle the feud?

When Lucknow Super Giants bought Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya in the IPL 2022 Auction, the fans were expecting something controversial from both players. But what happened on the field was something different as the team played their first match of the season against Gujarat Titans at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and while bowling first, both the players were in the lineup and were fielding against the opponent team. During the first over of the match, Dushmantha Chameera was bowling to Shubman Gill and he smashed the ball high up in the air.

With the ball being up in the air, the fielders gathered around it to catch it and Deepak Hooda was under it which looked like a tough one for him. However, Deepak Hooda managed to make the catch possible and with a dive, he got Shubman Gill caught out for a duck in the match. With the catch done, it was Krunal Pandya came running from his fielding position and hugged his teammate in joy to celebrate the big wicket of Shubman Gill in the context of the match.

(Krunal Pandya and Deepak Hooda hugging each other after dismissing Shubman Gill for a duck)

With such a scene, every fan was astonished to see this and hence it was confirmed that the feud between both the players has ended now and they are looking forward to winning the IPL title for the Lucknow Super Giants. The fans got to know that both the players have now become friends with each other and there isn’t anything heated between both of them. In an interview, Deepak Hooda said that:

“Krunal Pandya is like my brother, and brothers do fight. We are playing with one aim, which is to win games for LSG. I was not watching the IPL auction. We met just like the other players at the team hotel. Whatever happened is in the past, and as I said, we both are playing for the same team and our goals, too, are the same.”

With all the things being sorted between both the players, everyone was happy to see both of them contributing towards the team’s success and hence the Lucknow Super Giants managed to reach the Playoffs in the 2022 and the 2023 seasons with both the players performing well for the team. However, in both the seasons, the team was knocked out in the Eliminator and now in the 2024 season, the team will be looking forward to performing better and getting to the big stage.